South Africa’s high unemployment rate is taking its toll on the mental health of millions of youth facing joblessness and uncertainty about their future.
The South African Depression and Anxiety Group (Sadag) recently hosted an online discussion to assess how unemployment affects mental health, self-worth and daily life.
Experts recommended coping mechanisms and ways for the unemployed to find support.
Prof Lené Graupner, an industrial psychologist based at North West University’s school of industrial psychology and human resource management, told the Sunday Times that with South Africa’s unemployment rate sitting above 30%, the mental well-being of mainly young people is at risk.
“Research shows that unemployment is consistently linked to a wide range of mental health conditions across all age groups and sexes.
“This includes reduced overall mental well-being, increased rates of suicide, suicide attempts and suicidal ideation.”
Graupner said prolonged unemployment significantly increases the risk and severity of mental health problems, particularly depression, anxiety, substance use disorders and suicidal behaviour.
“It is important to provide support to individuals experiencing prolonged unemployment by creating a sense of community, thereby decreasing suicide risk.”
Over the past five years, South Africa’s official unemployment rate has remained above 30%, peaking in 2021 and easing only slightly since then.
“Depending on the measure used, some estimates put it as high as 43%. Even in 2024–25, at around 32–33%, it remains among the highest in the world,” said Graupner.
She said the reasons for the high unemployment rate are a complex interplay of structural, economic, political and social factors.
“Sources suggest that insufficient economic growth is probably the single biggest reason unemployment remains elevated.
“The slow growth of the economy in recent years has translated into what economists call a ‘limited demand for labour’. In essence, South Africa’s economy has not been expanding fast enough to absorb new entrants into the job market, nor to reduce the backlog of unemployed.”
Graupner believes interwoven political, economic and institutional problems have influenced levels of business confidence.
She said the Covid-era disruptions also led to large job losses.
Apart from external factors when it comes to unemployment, Graupner said a chosen field of study also played a critical role in graduate employment outcomes.
“Graduates in health and education fare better; those in administration, arts & social sciences, science and agriculture face higher unemployment risk.”
Graupner said demographics also played a role.
“With roughly a third of the population being young, hundreds of thousands enter the labour market each year, which is far more than the economy absorbs. If the economy doesn’t grow fast enough, many of these young people remain unemployed, increasing the ranks of the unemployed.
“The education system has struggled to equip workers with relevant skills for the labour market. Many employers cite a shortage of appropriately skilled labour. Although South Africa has a diversified economy overall, some high-unemployment demographics are not absorbed because growth sectors (like financial services or tech) require skills that the majority of job-seekers lack.
“Meanwhile, labour-intensive sectors (mining, agriculture, manufacturing) have either mechanised and shed jobs, or are growing slowly.”
Graupner said having meaningful work provides individuals with a sense of purpose and fulfilment.
“Employees who find meaning in their work are often more motivated and engaged, which in turn leads to improved mental health.
“The opposite is also true; not finding work can feel like, ‘I’m not good enough,’ which decreases self-esteem and amplifies negative self-talk.
“The loss of employment results in the loss of identity, social status, daily structure and meaningful activity, all of which are critical to mental health. Stigma, financial hardship and feelings of helplessness and failure worsen mental health. Financial hardship increases stress and reduces healthy lifestyle behaviours.
“Additionally, a sense of shame is experienced in being rejected and not selected for a job, each rejection can bring shame and embarrassment. Job hunting demands energy and confidence, but rejection can drain both, creating a vicious cycle where it becomes increasingly difficult to stay motivated and hopeful.”
Graupner said mental health is affected when unemployment raises feelings of rejection, anxiety and hopelessness.
In a bid to help tackle joblessness the Mr Price Foundation recently announced its plan to get 500,000 youth economically resilient by 2035.
The target, revealed in its newly released Integrated Impact Report, comes as the country grapples with the youth unemployment crisis.
The report highlights the foundation’s strides made in the past year through three core programmes that cover skills development for unemployed youth, entrepreneurship training and basic education.
Octavius Phukubye, executive director of the Mr Price Foundation, said an investment of R37m in education, skills development and entrepreneurship has created pathways to sustainable livelihoods.
“Unemployment represents one of the greatest systemic risks to South Africa’s future. There is a significant gap between people seeking work and those equipped with the skills to succeed, and our programmes are designed to close that gap.”
The foundation employed a data-informed approach to deliver focused and collaborative programmes that addressed critical skills gaps and improved school functionality. These programmes showed a significant measurable impact including seven in 10 of the unemployed youth trained through its JumpStart skills development programme secured jobs in the retail sector.
JumpStart has been instrumental in training candidates to be job-ready.
Apart from its 70% job placement rate, rehiring rates increased by 10 points to 61%, highlighting the candidates’ long-term value in the retail job market.
The programme also serviced 78% of Mr Price Group’s entry-level vacancies.
“Our job is to build youth economic resilience by equipping young people with the skills, networks and opportunities to participate meaningfully in the economy,” said Phukubye.
Sandile Bhengu, an assistant store manager at Mr Price Home Galleria in Amanzimtoti, Durban, said he was able to turn his life around for the better after joining JumpStart almost a decade ago.
“I applied for many jobs and training during my long six years of unemployment, but nothing came through. Then in 2016, I did JumpStart. Life has improved a lot for me.”
For Hlengiwe Mthobeni, an intern from Cape Town, JumpStart allowed her to enter the retail sector.
“It equipped us with valuable skills, knowledge and networks. We are now ready to apply them in the retail environment.”
The foundation is looking to expand the JumpStart programme by partnering with new potential employers and entering into new industries such as tourism, ICT and business process outsourcing.
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